Always
by Megan13
Summary: The day they first met the air was so thick they could hardley breathe. The last time was much the same... JN, originally posted as Sempre Tu
1. Chapter 1

**AN: So I've already posted two chapters of this story once. It was way back in the day and then I lost the disk, stopped caring about the storyline, and took it down. I recently found the disk and have decided that, huh, this isn't too bad of a story. So I'm reposting it.**

**Disclaimer: Characters aren't mine... Unfortunately.**

**AN2: Please review. I need feedback on this one.**

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The first time they'd met the air was hot and almost unbearable to breathe. Yet, their parents had thrown them together anyway. Well, not really. His parents had dropped him off at her aunt and uncle's house to visit with Sirius and later that day her parents rounded up her and her sisters and proceeded to dump them at 12 Grimmauld Place without any warning whatsoever.

They were only six then and full of curiosity. Narcissa, being the individual and adventurer that she was, had immediately deserted her older sisters and began wandering around the mansion on her own. Her sisters just waved her off and ran to the kitchens to torture the house-elves, not even giving their baby sister a second thought. They were used to it by now and knew that Narcissa knew she only had to scream if something went awry and her protectors would be there in seconds.

By the time Narcissa had wandered into the gardens, her curiosity was beginning to dwindle. She'd been to this house thousands of times and she had already studied every inch. In short, the mystery was gone and she'd become bored. Hell, even her home was more mysterious and new than this one. This was most likely due to the fact that she'd spent much more time at this home than her own.

After wandering for such a long time, her little legs began to tire and she began searching for somewhere to sit. Having already made rounds through her aunt's garden on more than one occasion (at least twenty-five was more likely) she knew that she only had to cross the bridge over the small stream, follow the dirt path through the roses, and take a direct right to find her favorite bench.

When she reached her destination, the smile on her lips fell. There, on _her_ bench sat a boy no older than herself carefully using his eyeglasses to kill an innocent ant. After a moment of glaring, Narcissa put her hands to her hips and marched angrily over to the boy and snatched the glasses from his hands.

"Hey," the boy cried. "What'd you do that for?"

"It isn't nice to kill innocent creatures," Narcissa scolded, the glasses dangling from her hand. She watched as the ant the boy was trying to kill scurried over the side of the bench and waited until she saw there were no more ants for the boy to torture before she handed his glasses back to him.

"It's just an ant," the boy said as he placed the small, wire glasses on his nose and behind his ears.

"And you don't think ants have feelings?" Narcissa demanded, her hands flying to her hips again. "How would that poor ant's mother have felt if he'd died?"

"I don't know," the boy shrugged and cocked his head. "Do ants have mothers?"

"Of course," Narcissa said. "Everyone has a mother."

"Not everyone," James said. "My friend Billy Crabbe doesn't have a mother."

"Well he did at one point," Narcissa said. "Or else he couldn't have been born."

"Oh."

"Do you have a mother?" She asked, trying to get her point across to the gangly boy sitting on her bench.

"Yes," he nodded. "Do you?"

"Yes," Narcissa said slowly. "I guess."

"What does that mean?" The boy asked.

"I… Well I have a mother," Narcissa bit her lip. "She's just never really around."

"Mine is," the boy told her. "She's my favorite person in the whole world."

"Well my favorite person in the whole world is my big sister Andromeda," Narcissa told him with a curt nod. "She's perfect."

"Really?"

"Of course," Narcissa rolled her eyes.

The boy smiled. "What's your name?"

"Narcissa," she told him. "Narcissa Black."

"James," he grabbed her hand and kissed the back of it. "James Potter."

"It's nice to meet you James," Narcissa said quietly as her tiny cheeks reddened slightly.

"Would you like to join me?" James asked, gesturing to the bench. "I'm playing hide-and-seek with Sirius and Regulus, but Sirius is a horrible seeker."

"Oh?" Narcissa raised an eyebrow.

"Yes," James nodded his head and helped Narcissa climb on the bench. "Just awful. I'm a good seeker though. I can spot anything a mile away."

"Which is the reason you have to wear glasses?" Narcissa said sarcastically.

"Hey," James grinned, "they give me more than perfect vision."

"Nothing can be more than perfect," Narcissa told him.

"You are."

Narcissa looked at him and her smile practically touched her ears. "Well, maybe _some_ things can be more than perfect."

They laughed then and enjoyed each other's company as they waited for Sirius to come find James. After nearly two hours of sitting on the bench Narcissa began to fidget and become restless. She'd never been one to sit for more than a few minutes without having to move and almost two hours of doing nothing but sitting was starting to tear at her. So, without a word, Narcissa hopped off the bench.

"Where are you going?" James asked as he plopped down beside her.

"If Sirius is too dense to find us, then maybe we should just find him," Narcissa said with a shrug and started to walk off. "Besides, my bum was starting to fall asleep."

"Mine too," James said and punctuated his words by rubbing his butt with his hands. "So, where do you think we'll find him?"

"Knowing Sirius and his lack of smartness, he's probably forgotten all about finding you and went to kick the house elves with Andromeda and Bella," Narcissa told him as she pushed aside a branch from the rosebush. She must have gripped the branch too hard though, because a thorn slashed a thin red line onto her finger. "Ow!"

"What?" James asked and quickly made his way to her side.

"I got cut," she told him and held out her finger for him to see.

"Hmm, that looks pretty deep," James nodded his head. "Does it hurt?"

"A little," Narcissa looked up at him. "Yes."

James smiled and placed a small kiss on her finger. "There, did that help? My mum always kisses me whenever I get a scratch. It makes the hurt go away. Did it work?"

"Yes," Narcissa said quietly.

James grinned and began the trek back up to the mansion, Narcissa following right behind. It only took them a few moments to make it from the tiny nook in the rosebushes to the mansion. Once inside they headed to the kitchens, Narcissa leading the way this time.

"Bella?" Narcissa called as she and James reached the doors to the kitchens. "Andromeda? Hey, where are you two?"

"Right here," they heard Bellatrix call back from across the kitchens. "Hurry up Cissa. You have to see this."

James and Narcissa looked at each other for a second before both shrugged and followed Bellatrix's voice. They found her and Andromeda standing over Sirius, laughing.

"What's going on?" James asked as they reached the girls' sides.

"Ickle Siri got ahold of Andromeda's wand," Bellatrix laughed and pointed. "He accidentally turned his face purple."

"It wasn't my fault," Sirius defended as Narcissa and James began shaking with laughter. "It wasn't. I'm telling my mum."

"Oh do tattle Siri," Andromeda said through her giggles. "We'll just tell her our own version of what happened."

"Two against one," Bellatrix grinned. "Who do you think she'll believe?"

"Me!" Sirius shouted.

"Oh," Bellatrix sat down on the floor and continued to laugh. "This is just too funny."

"I think I'm going to die laughing," Andromeda said as a tear ran down her cheek.

"Is that possible?" James asked Narcissa quietly.

Narcissa shrugged.

"Too funny," Bellatrix put her face in her hands. "…Hysterical."

"Come on guys," Sirius whined. "It's not funny anymore. Someone turn my face back to normal. Please? Andromeda?"

"Fine," Andromeda shook her head as if to shake away the giggles. Her face went straight for a moment, but just as she reached out for her wand, she fell into hysterics again. "I'm sorry Siri. You look so funny."

"Cissa?" Sirius' pleading look turned to his youngest cousin. "Do something?"

"Fine," Narcissa rolled her eyes, grabbed the wand from Andromeda's hand, and mumbled the counter-jinx. "Happy?"

"Thanks Cissa," Sirius said gratefully as the purple melted away and his face went back to its normal color. "I owe you."

"Yes, you do," she told him. She held out her hand to him and quickly pulled him to his feet. "Come on now. I think I saw a huge pile of chocolate frogs when I passed by Regulus' room earlier."

Sirius grinned and took off running.

"Hey," Andromeda stopped Narcissa and James, "don't spoil your appetite. We've got supper in thirty minutes and I don't need Aunt Elladora screaming at me for letting you binge on chocolate and ruining your dinner. Understood?"

The two nodded their heads obediently and ran through the house after Sirius. They found him in Regulus' room, sucking down chocolate frogs like they were his life support. Ten minutes later the whole pile of frogs was completely gone and three six-year-olds sat groaning as their stomachs began to churn.

Later that night as James and Narcissa huddled under the covers of Sirius' bed he asked her quietly, "When are you're mum and dad coming to pick you up?"

Narcissa shrugged. "Could be tomorrow or the next day or even tonight. I'm not really sure."

"They didn't tell you?" James asked. "My mum made sure I knew when she was coming to pick me up. The stroke of ten."

"I never know when my parents will come get me," Narcissa whispered as she pulled her knees to her chest. "Sometimes I don't think they ever will."

"Really?"

She nodded.

"But why?"

"I don't know," she sighed and rested her chin on her sun-kissed knees. "Sometimes they leave us here for a week and then will just show up one day and take us home."

"Why?"

"Sometimes I think…" She sighed again. "Sometimes I think the only people in the world who love me at all are my sisters."

"But what about your aunt and uncle?" James asked. "Surely they love you?"

Narcissa closed her eyes. "Sometimes when I close my eyes I can see my papa lifting me into his arms and hugging me real tight. And sometimes I can see my mama bending over me while I sleep and smiling as she wakes me up to go home. And sometimes I can even see all of us, my whole family, singing happily at Christmas time and laughing as I blow out candles on my birthday cake. But when I open my eyes, it never happens. The only ones who smile are Andy and Bella. They're the only ones who pick me up and hold me when I cry or when I get sick. They're the only ones who love me."

"I'll love you," James promised as he leaned forward and wrapped his short, pudgy arms around Narcissa.

She leaned into his embrace and, through her tears, asked softly, "Always?"

"Always."

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	2. Chapter 2

**AN: no reviews make Megan sad. Please send me some...**

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After that hot and muggy day in early August, Narcissa and James became quite close. James began going to the Black home more often as he and Sirius became better and better friends and almost always Narcissa was already there or dropped off at some odd hour by her parents. They had the time of their lives then.

Sometimes all of the children would play a huge game of magic tag or have exploding snap tournaments. But usually Bellatrix would wind up in the attic rummaging through old trunks, trying to find Dark Artifacts and Andromeda would curl up in the library with a good book and fantasize for hours about being somewhere, anywhere, else. This left the four younger children to play amongst themselves and, seeing as he was three years younger, Regulus was usually excluded as well.

Which caused Narcissa, Sirius, and James to form the most unique of bonds.

James hadn't lied the day he told Narcissa he'd love her forever and he made sure she knew it at every turn. As children this love was reserved for when she was hurt or picked-on or sad, but as they grew older it blossomed into something more mature, something well beyond the confines of friendship.

In essence, they fell in love.

As always with James, there was some sort of epiphany. He'd had one the day he'd met Sirius for the first time, the day he realized what a dung-bomb really was, and the day he realized that the love he'd carried for so long wasn't that of a brother loving a sister. Having an epiphany was always hard work, but when it was as earth shattering as his most recent, it was like going to hell and back.

They were at the very beginning of their sixth year when it happened, on the train to Hogwarts to be precise. Sirius had run away over the summer, claiming his family hated him and he them, and, of course, had come running to James. They had just sat down in an empty compartment when it happened.

Narcissa had stalked up and down the aisles, poking her golden head into every compartment until she found the one she was looking for. The look on her face and the stance she'd adapted after the door was fully open reminded James so much of how she looked the first time she'd marched up to him in the garden that he almost laughed out loud. But, from years of experience, James knew to keep his mouth shut when she looked at them like that. Sirius, James noted, also knew the wrath of his youngest cousin when she was in this state and shrank away from her glare.

"I cannot believe you Sirius Alphard Black," she hissed, her voice dripping with venom. "How dare you bring shame to our family once again? You're very lucky I love you with all my heart or I would tear you limb from limb and feed you your own entrails."  
James sneaked a peak at her delicate little hands and decided that yes, she most likely could rip Sirius limb from limb and then feed him his own organs.

Sirius looked at James for support, but James just shrugged.

"I have done nothing but love you and this is how you repay me? Do you have any idea what it's like at home?" Narcissa asked, tears forming in her cornflower blue eyes. "It's hor… Horrible."

Sirius opened his mouth but Narcissa held up a hand to stop him.

"You betrayed us Sirius," she said slowly, shakily. "You betrayed me."

And with that she turned on her heel and retreated from the compartment. Sirius slid lower in his seat, obviously feeling bad about the actions he'd taken earlier that summer, while James stood without hesitation and followed Narcissa to another empty compartment. He tried pulling the door open, but it wouldn't budge.

James sighed. "Narcissa. Please Cissa, open the door. I just want to sit with you."

"No," came the strangled cry from inside the compartment.

James' heart wrenched. "Please Cissa. I promise you don't have to say a word. Or, if you want, you can scream at me until your voice is hoarse and you're all cried out. Just open the door. I really don't want to get expelled for using my wand just mere hours from Hogwarts."

Silence.

"I'll do it you know," James threatened. "I'll use my wand and then I'll get expelled and it will be all your fault. I know you don't want to be the reason I wind up a garbage man, so could you please open the door?"

He heard the swish of her robes and a moment later the unlocking of the door. He waited a moment for her to open it, but decided she'd sat back down and reached out to do it himself. What he saw when the door slid open cut his heart in two. She was sitting on the bench, her face in her hands and her whole body shuddering. She looked up at him, but the gaze was cut short as her face dropped back to her hands.

"Hey, Cissa," James said quietly as he kneeled down in front of her. "Come on now, big girls don't cry."

"Yes they do," she murmured into her hands.

"But Black's don't," he cupped her cheek in his hand and, after a moments hesitation, she leaned into his embrace. "Come on Cissa. Look at me Love."

After taking a deep breath Narcissa slowly lifted her eyes to meet his. She shook her head and wrapped her arms around his neck so fast he almost fell backwards onto the floor. Luckily, he caught himself and pulled her to his chest as he settled onto the bench beside her.

"Now, now ickle Cissa," he teased. "You're okay. Tell Jamesy everything."

She shook her head.

"Come now, it can't be all that bad at home," James said. "It's not like your parents can be paying less attention to you than they have your whole life and…"  
"That's just it James," Narcissa cried and pulled away. "They are paying attention to me. They're paying more attention to Bella and me than they have our whole lives. Don't you see? That's the problem."

"But how…"

"I'm betrothed," she breathed.

It was at that moment, that excruciatingly painful moment, which James realized he was in love with her. He looked at her, his face frozen in horror and shock, and felt his heart break right in his chest. If only he'd realized it earlier…

"Say something James," Narcissa whispered; her eyes filled with tears of pain and worry.

"Who?" It was all he could manage to choke out.

"Malfoy," Narcissa's eyes shut tightly as she fought back yet another onslaught of tears. "Lucius Malfoy."  
"Why?" James asked as the back of his own eyes began to burn.

"They don't want me to shame the family name any more than it already has been," she shook her head and sniffled softly. "Bella's already been promised to Rodolphus Lestrange. They'll be married within the year."

"And you?"

"Graduation," she rested her head on his shoulder. "Not a day sooner, not a day later."

"You mean…"

She nodded against his shoulder as fresh tears spilled over her pristine cheeks. James let his own cheek rest on the crown of her head as they leaned back in the seat. He let her cry on his shoulder until she'd finally tuckered herself out.

Slowly, so as not to disturb her, he untangled himself, rested her sleeping body on the bench, and left the compartment. He headed down to the one he'd been sharing with Sirius an hour earlier and yanked open the door with all his might. His vision was blurred so he didn't even notice Remus and Peter sitting across from Sirius as he sobbed, "You have to go back Padfoot. Please, go back."


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Finally to the chapters that haven't been posted before. Thanks for the reviews. Please keep it up! And thanks to my Beta! You rock!**

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The rest of the day had been a flurry of numb motions for James. He'd gone back to the compartment and, after transfiguring a plate into another bench, curled up around Narcissa and held her so tight he feared he would crush her. When the train pulled into station he waited until the last possible second to rouse her. They walked silently to the carriages and spent much of the ride the same way. When they'd parted to go to their separate tables for the Sorting Feast he'd grabbed her hand tightly and held it until Remus begrudgingly told them to move. At the feast they watched each other from across the room, neither gaze wavering for a moment.

It went on like that for the next month or so; stolen glances and touches so quick it was as if the winds were toying with them. They'd watch each other as they walked to classes and purposely brush against each other during Prefects meetings because, really, it was the only option they had. These little interactions were what gave them life in their time of need, these little interactions helped them to breathe, and these little interactions were their lifeline…

James and Sirius had had a falling out the first day of the term. Upon hearing the reasons why he was ordered to go home, Sirius had not been pleased. It would only serve to make life harder on all of them if James told Narcissa he loved her, or at least, that's how Sirius felt. She was betrothed and there was no way around it.

"If you make life harder for my little cousin, James Potter," Sirius said shooting a glare at hi, "I'll kill you."

To which Remus had countered, "But if she loves him, they can be together!"

Sirius turned his glare on Remus then and hissed, "Don't you get it? She can't get out. It's a wizarding contract. It's perfectly legal and tightly sealed. And if the Malfoy's are anything like my family, which they are, then there will be no loopholes, no way for her to call off the engagement, no way for her to call off the wedding, and no way for her to divorce him. If James tells her how he feels then it'll make her feel like she's betraying him and right now I doubt she can take any more heartache. I won't let you hurt her any more James. I won't."

James had taken Sirius' words to heart and after that day took to loving her from afar where he could hurt no one but himself.

* * *

Narcissa, though, had other plans. 

She too was still reeling from her recent engagement and needed nothing more than her best friends to kiss away her tears, just as he had for so many years. Only he was no longer just her best friend.

Unlike James, Narcissa was not one for epiphanies. She'd spent the rest of the train ride to Hogwarts in the secure and familiar arms of her lifelong friend. She'd been comforted in the presence of her oldest ally during the carriage ride to the castle. She'd held on urgently to the hand of her favorite boy while trekking to the Great Hall. And she'd stared helplessly from the opposite side of the room at the man she was in love with.

She hadn't realized this until she'd gone to her rooms later that night and wept. She wept not for what was going to happen to her, but for what was not. James would never fumble over his words as he asked her on their first real date or nervously reach into the pocket of his trousers and pull out a delicate diamond ring. They'd never whisper 'I do' in front of a crowded room or breathe deeply in relief as their first child was born. There'd never be a white picket fence or a happily ever after.

It was what she dreamed of her whole life, and now, once the man she would do all those things with finally had a face, it all came crashing down around her.

It was shortly after their first Charms exam of the year that James and Narcissa were finally able to have time for themselves. They were partnered for their test, and upon finishing it first, were able to leave early. Knowing that it would probably be the only chance they had to be alone, the two had wandered to the games-keeper's hut on the edge of the Forbidden Forest to talk.

"Why do they keep this hut?" Narcissa asked as James pulled two dusty chairs from the corner of the room. "All it does is gather dust. Couldn't they put it to a better use?"

"Well they have to put the tools somewhere don't they?" James asked, grinning. "They can't just leave huge, sharp grass cutters laying about. What if a small first-year were to hurt themselves?"

"Well then they deserve it," Narcissa shrugged. "First-years shouldn't be out when visibility is poor anyway. Otherwise, they would see the deadly shears and steer clear. That is, unless they're dumb… Like you."

"Oh I see how it is," James laughed and ruffled Narcissa's blond locks. "I'm as dumb as a first-year?"

"Only the Hufflepuff ones," she giggled.

James raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, fine." She cocked her head and grinned. "You're not as dumb as a Hufflepuff first-year."

"Well, I'm glad you see it my way." James sighed dramatically. "I mean, I do have more brain cells than you."

"And I suppose it was you who just guaranteed our perfect score on that test?"

"Yes."

"Oh Potter." Narcissa shook her head. "Potter, Potter, you make me laugh."

"You seem to need some laughter in your life right now," James said softly. "Tell me what's troubling you."

"It's nothing," Narcissa sighed sadly.

"Oh come on, tell James all your dirty little secrets." James waggled his eyebrows.

"My dirty little secrets?"

"Yes, your dirty little secrets; I want to hear them all. Even the one where you admit to pillow fighting naked with the other girls in your dormitory," James said and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "And maybe those pillow fights turn into something more, shall we say, intimate?"

"Oh yes, because the sixth year Slytherin girls all get together and pillow fight naked every night," Narcissa said sarcastically. "And then all the Slytherin boys make bets with each other about who will be the last one standing."

"You let them watch?" James quirked an eyebrow. "Well you know, I would be willing to give up my nightly patrols in order to referee these little fights…"

"Oh James!"

"What?"

"You are so perverted," Narcissa laughed. "I miss this."

"What?"

"This." She held out her hands. "You and I… us joking around. I miss you."  
"Well I'm here," James said with a small smile.

"Always?"

"Always." He looked at her seriously. "I want you to come to me any time you have a problem. Will you?"

"I will," she said. "And you'll do the same?"

"Of course."

* * *

So it wasn't a surprise the next week when Peter interrupted James when he was studying to tell him Narcissa was waiting in the common room for him. He slammed his book shut and jumped to his feet instantly and, ignoring the murderous glare coming from Sirius, rushed out of his room. Upon entering the common room, his heart sank. There was Narcissa, standing in the middle of the room as the Gryffindor girls glared and mocked her tears. 

"Cissa," James breathed as he reached the bottom step. "What's the…"

She had practically thrown herself in his arms, cutting him off.

"…matter? Come on. Let's go to my room. We'll clear everyone out. Okay?"

She nodded against his chest and let him lead her up the stairs and into his room. Sirius was on her the moment they stepped foot in the room and practically dragged her to his bed. He sat her down, lifting up her chin to wipe her tears with a tissue, before pulling her into a bone-crushing hug.

"Cissa, what's wrong?" Sirius asked softly as fresh tears sprang to her eyes.

She shook her head and snuggled closer to his chest.

"Cissa, tell me what's going on," Sirius said a bit more forcefully.

"It's Bella," Narcissa cried. "She's taken the mark."

"What?" Sirius' voice dipped dangerously low.

"She's joined the Dark Lord, Siri." Narcissa pulled away from Sirius and stood up.

"How do you know?"

"Reggie," Narcissa said bitterly. "He's so proud of his cousin. He's waltzing around the common room telling everyone he can't wait to follow in her footsteps. The stupid child… I had to modify fourteen memories tonight."

"You're sister is a Death Eater?" James asked carefully as he made his way swiftly to Narcissa.

"Yes," she replied sullenly.  
"You don't plan to become one as well, do you?" He asked his eyes like daggers.

"Of course not," she scoffed. "I may believe in his message, but by no means do I believe in his methods. Nor do encourage it."

"So what are you going to do?" James asked.  
"What do you mean?"

"You mean you're going to stay in a family that accepts such behavior? Even prides it?" James asked unbelievably.  
"They are my family." Narcissa's eyes began to narrow.

"You'd stay true to a family of murderers that care nothing about you when you could just as easily leave and live with a family that does?" James' face was beginning to turn red.

"I can't leave them," Narcissa said incredulously.

"Why not?" James asked, putting his hands on her shoulders. "You have Andromeda, you have Sirius… You have me."

"That's just it," Narcissa hissed. "I agreed, by legal contract, to not terminate my engagement or sever ties with my family under the conditions that no harm is to come to my sister or my cousin. If I leave, then they, and whomever they reside with, will have no protection from the war and the Death Eaters. Andy has a new daughter, and I can't let anything happen to either of them."

"You've bargained yourself?" James asked quietly. "For their protection, you gave up your freedom?"

Narcissa nodded. "They're my family."

* * *

**Please Review!**


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Sorry 'bout the wait... Thanks for the reviews.**

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"James," Narcissa smiled two months later as she took his hand and led him away from the potions classroom, "walk with me."

He smiled then and let her lead him to the lake outside. The air was crisp and he could tell she was cold in her Hogwarts uniform; it took all he had not to wrap his arms around her and so, instead, handed her his cloak. When they reached the edge of the lake Narcissa sighed and inched closer to James' side.

Since the night Narcissa had appeared in his common room, James had only fallen deeper in love with the girl. She wasn't marrying Malfoy to save her hide or gain pride for her family. She wasn't protecting those who remained, but those who had gone. Narcissa was giving the one thing that no one else would ever be able to give Andromeda and Sirius: amnesty.

She'd traded her life to guarantee theirs and James felt he'd never met one as noble as the youngest Miss Black.

"I don't want to marry Lucius," Narcissa said softly after long minutes of silence. "He's very nice and very charming, but I don't love him."

"Cissa please," James whispered, barely trusting himself to speak. Lately, he'd avoided her more than usual because even being in the same vicinity of her reminded him of what he yearned for so deeply, yet would never attain. It was killing him.

"Bella and Rodolphus will be married next week," she said, her gaze never leaving the lake. "I'm to be the maid of honor."

"That's exciting," James said, hoping that he sounded encouraging.

"She loves him. Somehow, some way, she fell in love with him." She paused. "Do you think I'll grow to love Lucius?"

"I… I'm sure that you will," he whispered as his heart threatened to give out on him.

"But how can I love him when I love another?"

"What?" James asked as his neck snapped in her direction, clearly curious.

"Sometimes I think there's no one who loves me," Narcissa said softly. "My parents don't, I know that for sure. Andromeda, Bella, Sirius… They're all too busy with their new lives to stop for me. Even my fiancee doesn't love me."

"I love you."

"Always?"

"Always."

She grinned and turned to him. "You know, I never tire of hearing you say that."

"Then I may just have to say it every day for the rest of my life," he said and pulled her to his chest. "Would you tire of it then?"

"Never."

"What if I said it twice a day for the rest of my life?"

"Never."

"Three?"

"I'll never, not even if you tell me a billion times," she looked up and rested her chin on his chest, "tire of hearing those words from your lips."

"Well then, it seems to me that I should say it again." James' grin turned serious as he whispered, "I love you."

Narcissa sighed and turned her head so her cheek was now resting on his chest. After a moment she closed her eyes and whispered back to him, "I love you too."

* * *

It was as if she'd released a breath she'd been holding in forever. Over the past ten years, he'd told her he loved her… Well, she didn't know how many times, but it had to be well over a thousand. None of those times felt the same though. To her they had always been whispered promises of lifelong friends. They were not those of someone who was actually in love.

Now, Narcissa Black had made many mistakes in her life, many mistakes that she had come to think quite sentimentally as regrets. The first and foremost in her mind was being born at all. She was a mistake or a 'surprise' as her parents had told her once, and was discarded because. Actually, when she thought about it, hadn't her parents said that both her sisters were 'surprises' as well?

The second regret she had was not trying to stop Andromeda the day she left. Narcissa would never forget the day. It was one of the few times that summer that Sirius and James had been invited to her house to play, or, as they were twelve by then and didn't do such childish things as 'play', to hang out. Andromeda had swooped into the house in a pair of Muggle jeans and a Muggle T-shirt and started to gather her things.

When the screaming started the three children looked at each other before unanimously agreeing to investigate. Andromeda and Druella Black had reached the top of the grand staircase by the time the three of them had come rushing in and the two were screaming as if there were no tomorrow. Once Narcissa realized what was happening she'd just frozen on spot. She didn't move, didn't do anything, when Andromeda stormed past her, only stopping to plant a brief kiss on her littlest sister's and her favorite cousin's foreheads.

It was a day she'd always remember and regret.

After her older sister's disappearance, Bellatrix had begun taking Narcissa under her wing. She wasn't cut off from her cousin and James, but with Bellatrix looming over her shoulder at every turn spouting off ramblings of the importance of purity it had been quite hard for Narcissa to get in time for herself much less anyone else. It was especially hard when she began believing in her sister's message.

Sirius had not been amused when Narcissa used the M-word to describe one of his friends their third year and, subsequently, a rift had begun to divide them. It wasn't a huge rift, at least not at first. But after a few months of Bellatrix's words coming from Narcissa's mouth, Sirius hardly wanted to be around her.

They were still close though and if anyone messed with either, the consequences would be dire. Sirius almost got expelled from school when David Smith started a rumor that Narcissa had let him go up her shirt. David's stay in the hospital wing was at least a week long. Narcissa's methods of revenge for anyone who messed with Sirius were a bit more Slytherin. When Anita Lancing broke Sirius' heart in their fourth year by cheating on him with Bill Davies, Narcissa made sure Anita's life was a living hell.

Obviously their little bit of cousin-ly overprotection had not been enough to squash Sirius' hate for their family and, at the age of sixteen, he'd left. If she'd known he would commit such a heinous act, she would have tried harder to keep him happy. If anything, losing touch with Sirius was probably her worst regret.

She would, however, never regret what had transpired between James and her. For the rest of her life she would carry that moment around with her and treasure it above all else. She'd finally felt what it was like to be loved and nothing could take that away from her. Not even the man who was standing in front of her, waiting for her to accompany him to her sister's wedding.

When Narcissa first heard she could bring a date to Bellatrix's wedding, she had automatically thought of James. But, after a few moments of further cognition, she realized that there was no way a Potter was going to be allowed in her house, especially after harboring Sirius after he'd run away. She also realized that when her mother had mentioned bringing a date it wasn't to be one of her choosing, but more of a preliminary date for her and the Best Man, Lucius Malfoy.

"Miss Black," Lucius said silkily as he held out his hand to help her down the steps. "You look simply breathtaking."

She smiled, as would any girl in her spot, and took his offered hand. "Well thank you Mr. Malfoy. I must say, you look quite smashing yourself."

He chuckled lightly. "Thank you, but you mustn't call me Mr. Malfoy. My friends call me Lucius and I would love for you to do the same."

"I will," she said with a nod. "And do call me Narcissa."

"I will."

They stood in silence for a few moments, waiting for Vivian and Renton Parkinson to appear so they could get going. After noticing Lucius glance at his watch more than once Narcissa said amusedly, "In a bit of a hurry?"

"No, not at all." He looked down and smiled at her. "It's just that you're shaking and I don't want you to catch a cold because the Parkinsons couldn't be on time. Would you like my cloak?"

"Yes please," Narcissa said shyly and couldn't help but blush slightly as Lucius shrugged off his cloak and wrapped it around her shoulders.

"Better?"

"Much."

After a few more minutes of waiting, the Parkinson siblings arrived and the foursome quickly made their way to the carriage that was waiting to take them to the edge of Hogwarts where Lucius would apparate for all of them, none of them noticed the boy watching sadly from above.

* * *

James had known that one day he would have to stand tall and proud as Lucius Malfoy took the hand of the girl her loved and led her away from him. However, he didn't think it would have happened so soon.

Narcissa told him earlier in the week that she, along with Rosier and Parkinson, were going to meet Lucius in Hogsmeade and travel by floo to her home. So when he'd gone up to the tower to watch her go, he hadn't planned on seeing Lucius Malfoy pacing on the steps below. James was about to digress back to his childhood and throw a tantrum and then proceed to throw a carefully aimed hex when Narcissa swept out from the castle, her ice-blue gown bunched lightly in her hand to keep it from dragging.

He stopped glaring and watched her, completely mesmerized by her beauty.

And then she'd taken the hand of her fiancee and the hate he felt for Lucius Malfoy ignited in his chest. Hell, the hatred James felt towards Lucius clearly exceeded any amount of animosity he'd ever had with Severus Snape. Snape was a little boy's rivalry. The hate he felt for Lucius Malfoy would never include tripping hexes or pranks. No, the hate he felt for Lucius Malfoy was much more deadly.

* * *

Lucius Malfoy was known for his late-night exploits.

Since he entered Hogwarts nine years earlier he was at all times being pursued by one girl or another. Most of the Slytherin girls, and some from the other three houses, in his class at one point or another had had a crush on him. Even the older girls would help him with his homework or sneak down to the kitchens for him if he were hungry. He was born to one of the most noble and powerful pureblooded families in Britain, and they all knew it.

It was only natural that, with the amount of attention he received, as he grew older he would perfect the role of rich playboy to a tee. And that he did. It was quite common to see girls sneaking out of his dorm at all hours, and, usually, they were not seen again. By the time he graduated he'd compiled quite a long list of conquests and happily went out into the real world to find more.

But his plans had all come to a screeching halt the moment his father told him he was to marry. Lucius had fought tooth and nail to get out of the agreement, but Cassius Malfoy told him the deed had already been done and Lucius would not be getting his way this time. So Lucius took to sulking around his magnificent manor for the rest of the day.

By the time dinner rolled around, and the first formal meeting between he and his betrothed, Lucius had come up with the perfect plan to rid himself of this little girl. He would make a complete and utter ass out of himself and pray to all the Gods above that her parents would snatch her away without a glance back.

The moment he stepped into the parlor that evening though, his plan took a complete nose-dive. This girl, this little girl that had always talked back and never gave a damn what he said, was no longer a child. Three years… Only three years after he'd graduated and left behind the tiresome little schoolgirl, she'd grown into something only found in Fairy Tales. No, not even a Fairy Tale princess could compete with the likes of Narcissa Black. Only sixteen with hair of spun gold and eyes the color of sapphires.

Lucius nearly swooned.

Of course, Malfoys certainly did not swoon and at the last moment made his legs go ramrod straight. However, concentrating on keeping his knees from buckling, in no way helped to quell the look of pure shock on his face.

"Lucius," his father raised an eyebrow and gestured to the Blacks. "Don't just stand there, greet our guests."

Snapping out of his daze, Lucius quickly moved to the center of the room and shook his future father-in-law's hand. "Hello Mr. Black, Mrs. Black." He took a step to the side and slowly took Narcissa's hand in his own. He turned it over and pressed his lips gently into her palm. "Miss Black…"

"Mr. Malfoy," she said softly.

And that was all it took for Lucius to fall head-over-heels in love with her.

**Please Review. It makes me happy and also makes me update... Okay, that last part may not be entirely true.**


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